When The Poltergeist Cry
by Mayuna
Summary: Yusuke and his team are sent to the ghost town or rather village of Hinamizawa in search of a demon but it isn't really haunted, right?  A YYH/When They Cry crossover story.
1. Chapter 1

A/N: How long has it been since I wrote a Yu-Yu Hakusho story? Far too long in fact. It would have been like visiting with old friends if I didn't have a gnawing fear as to where the group is investigating. This story is a cross over between Yu-Yu Hakusho and Higurashi no Naku Koro ni or in the English version When They Cry. For anyone who has not seen 'Higurashi' let me put it to you this way; it makes 'Elfen Lied' and 'Devil May Cry' look like a Disney movie. It is extremely gory but at the same time extremely intelligent. Albeit extremely confusing but it all pulls together in the end. It is the type of show where everyone has their own conclusions as to what is really going on. This story is based off of mine. I think that I'm retarded because I didn't see the category for 'Higurashi' anywhere on here so for now it will just be under YYH.

One more side note as well since this is a YYH story I apologize ahead of time but it contains my OC from years ago, Keaka Kuwabara. It just wouldn't be my YYH story without her. Again...sorry for her.

* * *

Hinamizawa; the supposed cursed village where the residents that have been long dead allegedly still reside. The name alone is enough to keep most people away. Nearly everyone in the country of Japan has heard at one point in time of the awful tragedy that occurred leaving the village empty no land developer even considering to flatten it to make room for commercial use or high rise apartments. Yes most stay away because all children know that anyone who goes near Hinamizawa surely vanishes without a trace.

As the group of five approach the path that would lead to the old mountain village even the two demons couldn't help but vainly suppress a shudder. The two siblings most perceptive to apparitions and things of that nature stop dead in their tracks with hearts beating wildly and bated breath not wanting any part of the village that is teeming with activity. It is the brash young leader of the group that takes the first step ahead glancing over his shoulder at his companions.

"What the hell are you all just standing around for?" Yusuke Urameshi asked his friends. He took in each of their appearances noting the blanched looks of horror on each that were nearly identical.

"This place…this place…" Keaka Kuwabara states simply bringing a hand to her forehead as if steadying herself from falling over.

"Urameshi don't go in there." Kazuma Kuwabara says placing a hand on his younger sister's shoulder. Yusuke's glance turns to the eldest in the group who stares past him with narrowed eyes.

"This entire area is practically writhing with demonic energy. It would be wise for all of us to keep alert at all times." Kurama said taking a step forward to stand next to Yusuke followed by the smaller black clad demon already have shaken off the momentary fear that had gripped him.

The two siblings hesitantly walk up to their team silently agreeing to start their journey into the supposedly cursed village.

While others stay away one might ask why these seemingly normal teenagers would be doing walking into what some called the very portal into hell. In truth only two of the teenagers are fully human, the leader doesn't yet know he carries demonic blood, while the other two, as before said, are in fact fully fledged demons despite their youthful appearance.

For this team is none other than team Urameshi and together they have seen the worst part of life. The group were given authority from the spirit world and its miniature ruler to keep the demons who may enter the human world in line thus protecting those who could not protect themselves. This is the reason why they are entering Hinamizawa a place where allegedly nightmares are born.

Granted any information on the place was scarce aside from the old story that everyone, aside from Hiei, had heard.

"You see Hiei…" Kurama began to describe as they walked up the path. "Hinamizawa was a village that I believe only had about two thousand residents if not less. They lived up here more or less isolated from everyone else keeping to themselves. A natural disaster is what killed everyone. Poisonous gases leaked from the ground thanks to an underground volcano erupting one night killing everyone in their sleep."

"Wasn't it a few days before anyone was able to come up here too? I think I remember someone saying that before." Yusuke said receiving a nod from Kurama.

"All the same I don't see what has everyone so on edge. It is just a demon after all." Hiei replied arrogantly staring straight ahead as they walked.

"It is a natural reaction. I must admit even I am unnerved by being here." Kurama stated.

"Yeah no shit but at the same time it's kind of exciting you know, like a rush or something." Yusuke said feeling his adrenaline pump into his blood stream at full force.

"Speak for yourself Urameshi." Kuwabara stated. "This place is all kinds of bad."

The group continued on in silence keeping their pace steady as they walked along the dirt path that was lined with trees. Different species of birds called to one another as they flew from one perch to another as they insects chirped noisily in the tall grass. The group had been informed of the demonic activity in the area around the mountain earlier on in the year but because of snow and then mud in early spring the trek hadn't been considered worth it since the energy was confined to that one area and it, as previously mentioned, had not been inhabited for some time.

Simultaneously all five members of the group stopped dead in their tracks the only sound around them was their breathing.

"What happened to the birds?" Keaka asked timidly glancing up at the tree's before her eyes returned to what lay ahead of them whatever that may be.

"It would seem we have nearly reached our destination." Kurama replied his voice soft and calm as usual.

"Let's get this over with and get the hell out of here." Yusuke said taking a step forward leading as always with his friends following behind as usual.

Judging by the sun, their watches had stopped working some time ago, it took them roughly an hour to finally reach what appeared to once have been the town.

"How long ago has it been since everything happened here?" Kuwabara asked his throat clenching nearly choking off his words.

"It was June of nineteen eighty three." Kurama answered surprised as well at the condition of the town.

"Almost thirty years and this place looks like it could have been abandoned yesterday." Yusuke said to himself his eyes wide but from what exactly he wasn't quite sure.

"It should be run down by now. There shouldn't be anything left hardly by now, it's been so long since anyone has lived here but…I half expect someone to walk out of a shop." Keaka commented swallowing hard as well.

"It would be in our best interests to stay together." Kurama said finally breaking the uncomfortable silence that had developed as each wrestled with their own thoughts.

"Hm." Hiei said in his usual manner. "I do not need to be babysat." In a flash he was gone to where ever he deemed worthy of his attention.

"Please be careful Hiei." Keaka stated quietly taking in a deep breath.

"Keaka and I will go west into town." Kurama said placing a hand on his friends shoulder feeling her trembling underneath his touch.

"Guess we'll go uhhhh…that way." Yusuke said pointing north.

"Very well, we'll meet back when the sun is three quarters of the way across the sky." Kurama said.

"Be careful Kesaki." Kuwabara said bringing his eyes to fall upon his young sister.

"Sure, sure I will." She said offering a small smile but it was obvious it was strained. "You too Kazuma. Please watch out." The two nodded to each other before they parted ways.

Kurama and Keaka kept their eyes open each keeping their observations more or less to themselves. Despite their silence Keaka had gripped Kurama's hand tightly refusing to let go with her fingers tightening as they walked further into the village.

"This place…this place…" She said simply her eyes frantically moving from the empty buildings that surrounded them.

"Do you see anything?" Kurama asked curiously his own eyes scanning the area around them keeping his ears open as well.

"No, nothing it's more of a feeling. You feel it too don't you?" She asked softly. Kurama nodded.

"Yes. I do feel something. It is unlike anything I have encountered before. There is the demonic energy yes but there is something else that I can't quite place." He replied.

"I think it's confusion." She said her eyes moving down to the road as they walked.

"Confusion?" Kurama asked wondering what she meant.

"Yes, there is no doubt in my mind that this place is cursed because of what happened but Kurama I don't think that the people who once lived here know they are dead." She said shaking her head.

"Why do you say that?" Kurama tightened his grip around his friends hand as she moved slightly closer to him. She gave a small shrug.

"I don't know. It's just a feeling that I'm getting." She said. The two neared the edge of town walking towards what appeared to once have been the residential area. Kurama continued to walk stopping only when he felt a tug of resistance on his hand. He turned to his friend.

"Keaka-chan why have you stopped?" He asked. Her cheeks were flushed while sweat glistened on her forehead dripping down. The young girls mouth was slightly agape as her breathing appeared to be labored.

"Let's investigate here." She said distantly as if in a daze. Kurama's own eyes fell upon the house still feeling the same sensation that had been over flowing him since they had arrived.

"Alright." He said catching the name remotely on the mailbox. "Maebara."

The two walked up to the house slowly each scanning the area around them as well as the residence sending out their energy to search for anything malevolent finding nothing other then what seemed to hang in the air around them.

The front door was open probably from years before when the bodies of the occupants were taken out. Albeit from the stagnant air in the place that permeated it the house appeared to be nothing out of the ordinary.

"Do you think it would be safe enough for us to split up kit?" Keaka asked hesitantly. Kurama stopped in his scanning for a moment to turn his attention to the girl. A part of him wanted to say no but the words that came out of his mouth would be the ones to haunt him.

"I suppose so. If anything scream." He said simply receiving a nod.

"You too." She said with a small smirk playing across her lips. Kurama smirked back with a nod knowing that she was teasing him. Kurama entered the kitchen taking in its tidy appearance running a finger across the countertop.

"No dust." He said aloud glancing at his pointer. His mouth turned down as he moved his attention to the fridge opening it. Naturally there no electricity and what appeared to have once been food had spoiled but not at the rate that it should have been. "There shouldn't be anything left in here and it looks newly spoiled."

It took a lot of for the old fox to become fearsome but there was something about the place, aside from the stories and energies he was feeling, that caused him to call out to his friend and make his way down the hall in an attempt to find her.

Keaka had opened a few doors finding a closet as well as the bathroom before she entered a bedroom. The sleeping mat on the floor still laid open along with some blankets strewn aside as if someone had just hastily woken and run off. She knelt down to it placing her hand palm down hovering above the bamboo mat her eyes widening as she realized there was a stain in the shape of a body on it.

Quickly she stood up backing away slowly as if afraid something would pop up from the floor and grab her. She turned around swallowing down her uneasiness noticing the desk. Cautiously she made her way to it placing a hand on the seat pulling it out. Her stomach flipped wildly as she sat down placing her hands in her lap closing her eyes for a moment to steady herself. She rubbed at her eyes before opening them again.

'I wonder who this room belonged to.' She wondered to herself her eyes falling on the desk drawers. Shakily her hand reached down opening the top drawer. She rummaged finding nothing more than pencils and pens before moving to the next drawer. She couldn't help but let out a gasp of amusement at the magazines in that one. 'Well I can bet this was a guys room.' The bottom drawer held papers in it most blank but a few with words scribbled across them. Keaka pulled one out glancing at it her eyes scanning it.

_ May 15, 1983_

_So Hinamizawa isn't as bad as I first thought. Okay so it's boring as hell, whatever but I mean at least I've made some friends which is more than what I had back home. It's still funny to think of this place as home but I guess it was for the best. _

_Keiichi_

"Keiichi." Keaka said the name aloud her eyes scanning the words a few times.

'_I'm Keiichi.' _

Keaka jumped up from the chair knocking it over with her hair standing on end. Quickly she turned banging into the desk loudly. Her eyes glanced around the room wildly her hand still gripping the paper. For as long as she could remember she had heard voices that called out to her when physically there was no one there but this one had been different. Normally the voices held a whisper effect to them or an echo as if they were reaching her from across a vast chasm or long hallway but this one had been real as if someone had been standing a few feet away from her. It had been clear.

Her feet remained planted on the floor as she held her breath waiting for more receiving only silence.

"Keaka." She let her breath out as Kurama entered the room walking over to her.

"Kurama." She said breathless walking quickly over to him her movements seeming rigid.

"What happened?" He asked his voice coming out more forceful than what he had meant it to be.

"A voice, I said something and someone replied." She said.

"What did it say?" He questioned his eyes falling to the paper she held. He grasped it from her hand when she offered it to show him.

"It said, 'I'm Keiichi'."

* * *

"Man this place is worse than a graveyard." Kuwabara said breaking the quiet around them.

"No kidding. I just keep expecting something to jump out and scream, 'here I am', but this is way worse." Yusuke replied in agreement. The fact that the buildings were still in good condition was unsettling enough but what was worse was the fact that it felt like they were being watched even though he sensed no one there. "How you holding up partner?" Kuwabara's pallor and sweating not lost on him.

"I don't know man. You know I'm not one to back down from a fight but this place makes me want to run away screaming like a little girl. It's not even like there's anything there, I mean there's definitely something here but I just can't figure out what yet and that's the worst part." He said. "Normally I can tell the difference between a ghost and a demon but here there doesn't seem to be a line to draw."

"What do you mean?" Yusuke asked his tone flattening out slightly.

"It just seems kind of…I don't know, jumbled I guess." He said after thinking it over a for a minute or so. "Whatever it is this place is no good. Why did we get sent out here anyway? I mean if there is a demon lurking in this area who cares? As long as it's not bothering anyone."

"Beats the hell out of me." Yusuke said truthfully shoving his hands into his denim pockets. "Damn Koenma didn't have any frigin' info as usual. I swear that damned toddler just does this shit to piss me off."

"Well maybe if you didn't pick on him so much we wouldn't have this problem Urameshi." Kuwabara chided.

"Shut the fuck up. Like you're one to talk, you make fun of the magic midget too." He replied. Kuwabara opened his mouth to say something but stopped closing his mouth with an audible plop. The ball rolled across the grass from apparently nowhere. The two stared down the school house as if waiting for something receiving only the stifling silence that enveloped the village.

Without another word spoken the two walked up to the door pushing it open with a bang.

"It looks…clean like it was just left behind." Kuwabara noted as they walked down the short hallway.

"Yeah just like the rest of this place." Yusuke replied. They reached an open door glancing in briefly before walking in. It appeared to be a normal classroom with the teachers desk in front of the chalkboard and the lessons still written on it. Rows of desks were lined together to form groups of four while small cubbies sat in back of the class some still with items left behind by their occupants.

Curiosity took over for the two teens as they walked past the desks glancing inside of some. Yusuke flipped through a text book reading the name printed on the front of it.

"Furude Rika." He read glancing at some of the pages. "This is just a primary school book." He commented more to himself placing it back down.

"This desk over here has geometry homework in it." Kuwabara said. "Looks like high school stuff."

"Well if the village was small maybe the school was integrated. It would make sense if they didn't have a lot of kids just to have them all in the same school." Yusuke said. Kuwabara nodded in agreement picking up a deck of cards before placing them back down.

Yusuke walked towards the cubbies his finger tips grazing a jacket that had been left behind.

"Kind of scary when you think about it. I bet the kid that owned this just thought they'd bring it home the next day only to go to bed and not wake up again." He said thoughtfully.

"Yeah kind of makes you think, huh?" Kuwabara said. Yusuke nodded stopping front of another cubby glancing into it. He reached out to grasp the metal bat biting on his lip. It felt cold as if someone had put it in a freezer or it had been left outside in snow.

'_Neene.' _

Yusuke dropped the bat jumping as it clattered to the floor. Someone had tugged on the hem of his tee shirt.

"Did you hear that Urameshi?" Kuwabara asked loudly fear evident in his voice.

"No but someone just touched me!" He nearly shouted back unnerved as well. "You heard something?"

"Yeah it said, 'neene', I think." He replied nodding his head.

"Well what the hell does that mean?" Yusuke asked his voice taking on its normal cynical tone.

"How the hell should I know Urameshi?" Kuwabara shouted at him. Yusuke ran a hand through his gelled hair tugging on it somewhat.

"Screw this place. Let's find this damn demon and get the hell out of here." Yusuke said making his way to the door with his friend close behind him. Hurriedly the two made their way back down the path towards the town stopping dead in their tracks with their eyes widening at what lay before them.

* * *

Kurama led Keaka out of the house readying themselves to turn in the direction he had originally intended for them before making their detour.

"Hi." The voice caused them both to turn around. The boy stood before them seemingly human and quite friendly but they both knew that looks could be deceiving. His hair was brown sticking up at odd angles here and there. His eyes were warm holding no malice behind them towards the pair. He appeared to be about Yusuke and Kuwabara's age.

"Hello." Kurama greeted back. "We were just on our way." He glanced down at Keaka taking in her appearance. Her body seemed more relaxed around the stranger oddly enough when he would have bet the sudden appearance would have sent her on high alert.

"I haven't seen either of you in Hinamizawa before. You guys new?" The boy asked readjusting his backpack better.

"Yes we are. It's a lovely village that you live in." Keaka replied before Kurama could answer. He narrowed his eyes at his friend taking in the aura around her. Something was wrong. Very wrong.

"Meh, it's alright. I mean it's quiet. To be honest I haven't really lived here that long myself but great I'm not the new kid anymore. Thanks for that." The boy said with a grin his eyes falling more on Keaka. She shrugged.

"No prob." She moved away from Kurama offering her hand to the boy. "I'm Kuwabara Kesaki." Kurama stared at his friend feeling his demon heart thud in his chest. As long as he had known the girl she never cared to reveal her full name if she could help it always preferring to go by her nickname. Whatever was going on he had to remove her from the situation quickly. "This is Minamino Shuichi."

Kurama couldn't help rolling his eyes at being introduced as well to the boy who had appeared out of nowhere.

"I believe that we have to be going now Keaka." He said gripping her by a hand before the boy could shake hers.

"I'll see you guys at school tomorrow right?" He asked receiving a nod from Keaka who was being led away. She waved back at him smiling sweetly. "Oh I'm Maebara Keiichi." He called after them through cupped hands.

It wasn't lost on Kurama that there was a sudden onslaught of noise. In any other setting it would have been a relief after the silence that had settled upon them but only caused him to become more untrusting and distressed as he pulled the young girl along behind him. Traffic droned from the town as well as some chatter from people who were nearby. The abandoned ghost town had suddenly burst to life in a matter of seconds leaving him to question what had happened.

"Keiichi-kun." Keaka said from behind him giggling a little after the name fell from her lips. Kurama stopped suddenly.

"Wasn't that note from a 'Keiichi'?" Kurama asked turning around quickly. Keaka only stared up at him blankly.

"Note?" She asked shaking her head somewhat in question. Kurama had folded the paper placing it in his pants pocket. He took it out to show her.

"Yes Keaka, this note the one from the house. It was written by a Keiichi." He watched as the realization came back into her eyes. "Listen to me carefully. Something has happened and I'm not sure what but if my fears are confirmed then we are in a lot of trouble. We must find Kuwabara and Yusuke."

* * *

"What the hell?" Yusuke shouted once he found his voice again. Kuwabara simply stared in disbelief. "This place was abandoned. Where did all the frigin' people come from?"

"I told you this place was bad news Urameshi." Kuwabara replied his head swimming from the sudden noise. "We should uh, go the where Kurama told us to meet at."

"Yeah that's probably a good idea." Yusuke replied.

"_Now watch as the game begins." _


	2. Chapter 2

Hiei felt the sudden change in the environment leaving his head swimming. He crouched to the ground in an attempt to steady himself as he blinked rapidly.

'What was that?' He wondered to himself looking around once he regained his bearings. Physically nothing appeared different in the village, at least not where he was at. Slowly he stood waiting at any moment to be attacked straining his hearing receiving only the deafening silence that hung in the air heavily. His hand moved to his forehead removing the white bandana uncovering the jagan. His own two eyes shut as his psychic one opened revealing to him the truth of what was going on.

* * *

Yusuke and Kuwabara had found a bench to sit on where they had parted ways with their companions earlier waiting anxiously for them to return. They watched as people came and went out of the stores laughing amongst each other or simply walking by seemingly on their way to work or home. At first the two had thought to approach someone but decided against it quickly uncertain if it would be wise. Both had agreed that Kurama would know what to do in the situation, hopefully.

"This is definitely going on my weird shit list. Right at the top." Yusuke said more to himself than his friend.

"Yeah no kidding." Kuwabara said. "The weirdest part of it is all of those feelings that I was picking up on are gone."

Yusuke turned his attention back to his friend frowning.

"What do you mean…gone?" He asked his voice straining in his voice.

"I don't know really. All I know is that when we got here my head was all muddled and now it's not. It's clear I guess you could say." He replied staring off ahead of him.

"Urameshi! Ni-san!" The two companions looked to their right to see an exasperated Kurama being pulled by an oddly overly excited Keaka. She let go of the demon's hand to run over to her brother and friend. "Why do you guys look so down? Look, everything has suddenly come to life!" She stated pointing to the street.

"Did you hit your head or something sis?" Kuwabara asked alarmed at her excitement over their unsettling situation.

"Yeah no shit; last I knew a ghost town is supposed to stay that way." Yusuke chided. "Kurama what the hell is wrong with her?" The spirit fox stopped in front of his allies letting out a sigh.

"It is my fault I'm afraid. One of the 'residents' made contact with her and she has been acting out of sorts ever since." He replied his eyes never leaving the girl as she watched everything around her with a smile on her face. Yusuke stood up as did Kuwabara.

"Did you find anything out?" Yusuke asked feeling his heart beat faster in his chest but soon falling to settle heavily in his stomach when he shook his head.

"I wish that I had. How about the two of you, anything?" He asked receiving the same response. The four stood around for a moment unsure of how to proceed before deciding to simply start walking.

"I'm not picking up on anything anymore." Kuwabara said softly his eyes scanning the immediate area around him attempting to take in what his frazzled brain refused to accept.

"Awww but it's so cute! I want to take it home with me!" The group stopped as a girl dressed in a white dress with a white hat ran in front of them peering into the store front.

"No it's not Rena. That has to be the ugliest picture I've ever seen." The girl with blue hair said placing a hand on her hip and rolling her eyes.

"Oh Mion! You are so mean! No it's not, it's not!" Rena shouted back at her pouting. "Keiichi you think its cute right?" She asked as the boy walked forward. Kurama gasped grabbing Keaka by the wrist tightly attempting to pull her behind him.

"Keiichi-kun!" Keaka shouted waving her hand excitedly at the boy. He looked over and smiled widely.

"Let me guess, that's the one who made contact?" Yusuke asked his voice cynical.

"Yes it is." Kurama replied.

"Kesaki-chi nice to see you again." Keiichi replied waving and taking a step towards the group with his own friends close behind. "What happened to you I thought you said that you were going to be at school but you never showed. I thought that you had left."

"No I'm still here." She said her face breaking out into a smile. Kuwabara stepped protectively beside his younger sister crossing his arms in front of him. "You guys, knock it off."

Yusuke crossed his arms as well glaring at the other boy, if that's in fact what he was. The two stared at each other each passing a silent threat to the other.

"Look I don't want any trouble bro." Keiichi finally conceded but still stood his ground.

"I'm not your 'bro' man and if you know what's best for you you'll walk the other way." Yusuke said. Keiichi looked around at the group that had surrounded the girl visibly swallowing.

"Hey who do you guys think you are?" The blue haired girl, Mion, demanded loudly.

"Yes you are all being very rude. Keiichi was only saying 'hello' to your friend. There's no reason to act this way, this way." Rena stated placing her small hands firmly on her hips for emphasis. The group remained silent, except of course for Keaka.

"What is with you guys? They're right you're all being extremely rude." She said huffing slightly irritation in her voice.

"Nah, it's cool. Don't worry about it." Keiichi said with a smile to boot. "I'll just see ya' around Kesaki-chi." With another glare at Yusuke Keiichi walked away with his friends close behind.

"What is wrong with you?" Kuwabara asked turning to his sister.

"What do you mean what's wrong with me? What's wrong with all of you?" She demanded staring up at her elder brother with lips pursed together tightly.

"Keaka, those are not people. They're…they're an illusion or ghosts or something; damned if I know what the fuck is going on in this frigin' place." Yusuke yelled at her grabbing her by the shoulders for emphasis shaking her until her head bobbed and her teeth chattered together.

"Follow me." Kurama said motioning for his friends. Kuwabara grabbed his younger sister's hand leading her along as she fought slightly to get away wanting to look around in the shops. They walked a few blocks before reaching a building stating it was an inn. "We need a place to gather our thoughts in private and discuss our strategy."

"Do you think it's smart to talk to people?" Kuwabara asked concern evident not only in his voice but etched on his face as well.

"I don't think it really matters anymore." Yusuke replied shoving his hands deep into his pockets and frowning.

"You're in room 318. Enjoy your stay and please be sure to visit the Watanagashi festival this coming Sunday." The receptionist stated politely handing Kurama the key. He nodded his thanks leading the way to their room.

"Talk about fashion disaster." Yusuke said entering the room and sitting on the bed. The walls were orange while the bed spreads on the two queen beds were a deep red color. The room was tied together with a plush brown carpet. Kurama walked over to the curtains closing them tightly while the Kuwabara siblings sat down as well.

"Did you hear there is going to be a Festival! We should go." Keaka said excitedly fidgeting in her seat. Yusuke brought a hand to his face rubbing at his eyes.

"Keaka, I have never wanted to punch you as badly as I do right now. Shut the hell up! Don't you get that's something is wrong here? A little while ago you were practically pissing your pants. Keaka; shit has officially hit the fan and you're acting like a school girl!" He shouted at her jumping to his feet.

"I am a school girl Urameshi." At the sound of her voice Yusuke took a step forward his eyes twitching dangerously. Kurama clasped a hand firmly on his shoulder to reel him back in.

"Fighting amongst ourselves won't do any good. We need to regain our wits and make a plan." Kurama got Yusuke to sit down beside him before continuing. "We are here on a mission to take down a demon. Now our information on this demon is severely limited. What we do know is that it resides in this area and has for some time. It has been of no real consequence seeing as people generally stay away from Hinamizawa but regardless spirit world is concerned with more activity coming from the area. That is why we are here. Granted with the situation that has presented itself it could be many things as you pointed out Yusuke. Anything from a demonic illusion to…"

"Ghosts." Yusuke said staring at the carpet boring a hole through the floor. Kurama sighed closing his eyes.

"Perhaps. Kuwabara do you feel anything like you did before, anything at all?" Kurama asked reopening his eyes.

"No nothing. It's almost like the time where my powers went dormant." He stated keeping a wary eye on his sibling who seemed unfazed by the conversation. Kurama took out a seed from his hair staring at it in the palm of his hand. After a few seconds he let out an exasperated sigh closing his hand around it.

"What's wrong?" Yusuke asked turning his attention to his friend. Kurama stared at his hand clenching his teeth.

"I cannot manifest my energy to manipulate my plants." He said replacing the seed back in its place. Yusuke stood up pointing his finger with his thumb up in the gun gesture that he had grown accustomed too. He stood for several minutes becoming more agitated as each second passed.

"What's up Urameshi? Can't shoot your gun?" Kuwabara stood up standing next to his friend.

"Shut…up Kuwabara." He replied glaring angrily at the other teen.

"Oh well it was all funny when I couldn't bring out my spirit energy but now that you can't it's a problem. Heh, punk let me show you how it's done." He countered. "Spirit…sword! Oh come on, come out! Awww." Kuwabara sat down heavily on the bed.

"This provides us with a new array of problems." Kurama stated after the group remained silent for some time. "If we are unable to manipulate our energies it leaves us at a huge disadvantage."

"Keiichi asked why I didn't go to school but we just saw him Kurama didn't we or was that the other day? I can't seem to remember." Keaka stated suddenly as if from far away her gaze mirroring her words.

"Oh my god Keaka, just stop talking you aren't even making any sense." Kuwabara said shaking his head.

"No actually that is the first lucid thing she's said in, well, a while; since the repopulation of the village at least. She is correct though. That boy or whatever he is did say that to us when we met him in the residential area. Then earlier in town he acted as if he hadn't seen Keaka in a few days or so." Kurama said bringing a finger to drum lightly against his lips obviously in thought.

"So what…do you think that time passes by fast here?" Kuwabara asked.

"Could be." Kurama replied distantly. "At any rate I think our best interest would lie in finding Hiei." He said standing.

"Yeah good thinking Kurama." Yusuke commended. "Uh, what should we do about her?"

Keaka had walked over to the window and opened the curtains widely staring out at the small city watching the scene outside. Kurama walked over to his friend placing a hand on her arm.

"Kurama let's go and check out Hinamizawa." She said not taking her eyes off of the window.

"Yes Keaka that's what we are planning on doing but first we have to find Hiei." Kurama said. For a moment he was unsure if he had been heard.

"Dude this is…bad." Kuwabara said. "Whatever happened here affected her but why?"

"I don't know man." Yusuke said shaking his head.

"Okay kitsune, let's go find Hiei then." Keaka said taking her friends hand. Kurama held onto her hand tightly unwilling to let go.

"We will simply keep an extremely close eye on her." He said.

The group made their way down the stairs walking past the receptionist desk.

"Will you be going to the Watanagashi festival?" The girl at the desk asked, a different girl from before.

"No, we won't be here by Sunday." Yusuke replied walking past her.

"But today is Sunday. The festival is today." She stated looking at the teen confused. The group stopped at the desk staring at her each dumbfounded into silence.

"We just arrived here today. A short while ago actually." Kurama began speaking slowly in order to maintain his own composure. "The girl that was here before said the Festival was to be held in a few days."

The girl scrunched her nose slightly and cocked her head to the side before taking out a brown notebook. She skimmed her finger down shaking her head.

"Room 318 right? You checked in on Tuesday. Is everything alright?" She asked her expression changing to one of concern. Kurama shook his head while everyone exited the building. The town wasn't as busy as it had been with only a few residents walking around. The smell of food cooking from somewhere in town was what first caught their attention as well as the distant sounds of laughing and shouting happily.

"It would definitely appear that there is a Festival going on." Kurama stated.

"This is fucking ridiculous. We weren't in that room for no more than an hour it seemed like. The sun didn't go down or anything. How the hell did so much time pass?" Yusuke asked annoyed at the situation.

"I must admit this is one of the more bizarre predicaments I have found myself in." Kurama stated as the group began to walk towards the sounds of the festival.

They walked up the steps to the shrine where at the top booths were set up selling food, clothing and small knick-knacks to commemorate the Festival. Paper lights were strung between the booth's giving just enough in the area for people to be able to see.

"Kurama, any idea what exactly this Watanagashi Festival is all about?" Yusuke asked taking in the scene before him.

"Cotton drifting Festival, I believe a ceremony is performed by a shrine maiden where upon she blesses the cotton and the residents of the village send it down the river with their wishes." He replied.

"Sounds gay to me." Kuwabara stated. Kurama let out a soft chortle despite himself.

"Yes well I believe it has some darker roots of which I'm not entirely sure but it has something to do with corpses." He said causing a few glances to be tossed in his direction.

A drum beat caught their attention causing them to turn towards a stage that had been set up. Rattling was played as well to accompany as a small girl stepped out from behind a curtain. She was dressed in a traditional priestess outfit, white top with red bottoms that flared out to reveal wooden sandals when she took a graceful step forward. She held a staff in her hands decorated with red tassels marking it as sacred. Her long dark hair flowed around her as she moved raking her instrument across a large roll of cotton. She slammed it down a few times before raking it creating a seemingly denser mood than the one they had walked into.

The group stood transfixed at what they were watching along with the others that stood around them watching intently until it was done. The girl made her leave and people began to form a line to the stage.

"Excuse me." A small voice said from behind. Simultaneously the tantai's turned around quickly to be faced with the young shrine maiden that had performed the ceremony. "I didn't mean to startle any of you it's just that I haven't seen any of you in Hinamizawa before. Did you come here for the Festival?"

Kurama stared at the small girl taking in her stance and demeanor as well as the haunted depth that she held in her eyes. She was old. Perhaps even close to his own true age.

"It would appear that we have made a wrong turn somewhere. Miko-san, is there any way you may be able to guide us in the right direction?" Kurama asked wondering if the girl would catch onto what he was saying. In an instant her sweet demeanor fell to a much more mature one.

"I would speak with you, all of you." She said beckoning them to follow her off into the woods that surrounded the area.

"Kurama?" Yusuke asked unsure of what to do. Kurama only nodded his head once at his friend and followed after the young girl.

Once they were some distance away from the Festival the girl stopped with her back still turned to them.

"I am Furude Rika. My family are the protectors of Hinamizawa I suppose you could say or rather were…once. " The girl began. "I have lived well over a hundred years simply floating from one Hinamizawa to the other trying to right the wrongs that can't seem to be undone."

"What happened here?" Kuwabara asked. Rika's shoulders slumped while she clenched her fists tightly.

"There was an incident, a cover up. It took me a very long time to figure out all of the details and I was sure once I did that we would finally be able to move on past June of nineteen eighty three but no matter how hard I try it always just seems to fall apart." She replied.

"A cover up?" Yusuke asked. "So the village wasn't destroyed by a volcano or something?"

Rika turned around to face them her hair whirling around and blowing slightly in the warm breeze that had picked up.

"Yes. There was never any poisonous gas leak. First I have to ask, where did all of you come from?" Rika asked more for necessity then curiosity.

"We all reside in Tokyo. In the year two thousand eleven." Kurama stated taking in the pained look that graced the girl's features but were soon masked.

"Two thousand eleven; that seems so far away from here, from now. It must be nice to see the flow of time, the progression made as opposed to the same days over and over again. Are any of you familiar with Hinamizawa Syndrome?"

"Yes actually I have. It is a sickness that has roots here is it not? The infected become crazed and commit extreme acts of violence." Kurama said receiving a nod from Rika.

"Yes that is correct. Everyone in Hinamizawa is infected. If a person is put under too much stress or becomes angry they begin to develop an intense paranoia. They become distrusting and violent. In the end they end up clawing out their own throats." She confirmed.

"Well isn't that cheery." Yusuke said.

"The incident of which I spoke of was catastrophic but it was pre-meditated. A woman named Takano Miyoko is the leader. She is part of an investigation team sent to study Hinamizawa Syndrome but her program is ending in a few years which will result more than likely in the end of her research." Rika explained.

"I see. This Takano more than likely felt extremely jaded that they were pulling the plug on her research and decided to go out with a bang, so to say, taking everyone out with her." Kurama said.

"Precisely." Rika confirmed.

"How do you know all of this?" Kuwabara asked curiously. Rika closed her eyes lowering her head a bit her lips forming a sad smirk.

"Like I said I have lived in June of nineteen eighty three many times. It is the equivalent to well over a hundred years. For a long time I gave up. Sending for all of you was in all honesty a last ditch effort." The group let out an audible gasp.

"Sent for us?" Yusuke asked. "We were sent here…"

"By Koenma-sama. Urameshi Yusuke, the Reikai Tantai. Yes I have been told all about you from Hanyuu. She is the one who sought out Koenma-sama's help." Rika said receiving a wide eyed stare from Yusuke and Kuwabara.

"Who is this Hanyuu?" Kurama asked attempting to place this new revelation into their mission.

"Hanyuu is Oyashiro-sama; the guardian of the village. It is believed in the Furude family that if eight generations of girls are born consecutively then that child will be the reincarnation of the Kami, Oyashiro." Rika stated.

"And let me guess, you're the eighth?" Yusuke stated. "Your name sounds really familiar by the way but I can't…seem to place it."

"You were at the school house a while ago. Hanyuu sensed you and told me that you had arrived." Rika said.

"That's another thing I don't get. What's with the time flow here? We just got here and it's like we've already been here for a while." Kuwabara said irritation clearly in his voice.

"It is disjointed for you because you are not a part of Hinamizawa. If you were to become a part of this place then it would flow normally." Rika said.

"Okay and how exactly do we become a 'part' of Hinamizawa?" Yusuke asked.

"I can assure you Urameshi that that is not something that you want to do. When Hanyuu said that she could bring in outside help I was hesitant. I don't want anyone else to have to suffer the unending nightmare that we have to endure." Rika looked up suddenly glancing at the group and gasped. "Where is Kesaki?"

Kuwabara, Yusuke and Kurama glanced around them quickly.

"What the hell? She was just here." Yusuke shouted.

"Damn it! Keaka!" Kuwabara shouted cupping his hands around his mouth so that his voice would carry.

"Furude-san, Keaka it would seem has taken an interest in a boy here. His name is Maebara." Kurama began before being cut off.

"Keiichi. Yes he mentioned meeting a new girl but he never said what her name was. It is imperative that we find her before she gets interweaved into Hinamizawa." Rika said.

The group began to run with Yusuke and Kuwabara going in one direction while Kurama and Rika headed in another.

"You never did explain how one becomes a part of Hinamizawa." Kurama said his eyes scanning the area for any sign of his friend.

"They die. Once everyone dies that is involved it gets reset and I am sent to another Hinamizawa. Once there I am the only one who remembers anything but still it's foggy like a dream." Rika said. "I am sorry Kurama I truly am."

"Why is that?" He asked her glancing in her direction.

"I am sorry because Keiichi has been displaying his symptoms again." She replied. Kurama brought his attention to the small girl momentarily.

"Symptoms of what, Hinamizawa Syndrome?" He asked his voice taking on an edge to it.

"Yes, it isn't the first time that he has succumbed to it and I fear that your arrival here is what off set it this time around." Rika confirmed. Kurama felt the blood pound into his head as his heart beat rapidly.

"What is that supposed to mean?" He asked his body stiffening as he went into more defensive stance as they stopped.

"From what Keiichi said all of you were keeping her from him. He started to become more agitated despite what any of us said or tried to do for him. Normally whatever tragedy is going to befall all of my friends happens a few days after Watanagashi but I fear that Keiichi is too far gone already. If he finds her he may do something horrible." Rika said taking in the horrified expression on the taller boys face.

* * *

"I would speak with you, all of you." She said beckoning them to follow her off into the woods that surrounded the area.

Kurama had long since let go of his hold on Keaka's hand. She had every intention of following her friends into the woods with the young shrine maiden in the lead. She walked behind her brother when a small whistle caught her attention. She turned her head a smile breaking out onto her face widely. Keiichi stood behind a tree motioning for her to go to him. Keaka looked back to her friends, they hadn't turned around and were disappearing into the darkness that shrouded the forest. Quickly she made her way over to the boy who grasped her by the hand moving quickly in the opposite direction her group had gone in.

The two came to a shrine of some sort and stopped. The moon lit the area well enough to be able to see enough of the surrounding area.

"Hi." Keiichi said simply smiling at the girl.

"Hello Keiichi-kun. It's nice to see you again." Keaka replied smiling back as well.

"I'm so glad that I finally got you away from your body guards. What's with those guys?" He asked good naturedly.

"Well we're here on a mission you see, so we watch out for each other that's all." She said receiving a brow quark from the boy.

"A mission huh, what kind of a mission." Keiichi wondered aloud.

"Just something that we have to get done is all." She stated looking to close the conversation. Despite what everyone thought she was in no way impaired. Ever since she had read the note and heard Keiichi speak to her she could feel the despair of the residents of Hinamizawa. It felt as if they were calling out to her from a dark void begging for help. In her mind the best way to figure out how to help the people of the area was to become more involved with them.

"You're not from the government or anything right?" He asked bringing her from her thoughts.

"No. Definitely not." She said with a short soft laugh. It had not been lost on her the sudden change in the boy's mood. It had been something that Kurama had drilled into her head when he had trained her. It was imperative to survival. She would have to be careful. Something wasn't quite right with Keiichi Maebara.


	3. Chapter 3

Rika and Kurama searched for Keaka desperately for hours stopping only momentarily when they found the body of Tomitake.

"I've always known that he died but this is the first time that I've actually seen the corpse." Rika said softly closing her eyes tightly.

"He clawed his throat out. Does that mean that he suffered from Hinamizawa syndrome?" Kurama asked receiving a nod from the miko.

"Yes but believe that his was accelerated by Takano. " Rika said clenching her fists and grinding her teeth together. "Every time that I think about it I'm fueled by such rage. All because of her selfishness and greed to see her own dreams come true she subjected us all to this unimaginable hell."

"I have to confess I am confused slightly. If Takano lived initially how is it that she is here in this cursed place?" Kurama asked. Rika unclenched her fists and stared straight ahead.

"This is but one Hinamizawa. There are many but each one becomes broken and shatters before my eyes every time." Rika turned her attention up to the kitsune catching his gaze. "I will fix things and save my friends eventually."

Kurama thought about what she said as they moved on contemplating the situation. It could be how Rika said that she simply moved from one reality to the next but if that were the case why was it that she would return to this Hinamizawa that they had entered if it obviously had already been destroyed.

'Perhaps Takano didn't survive after all and Rika is unaware of this since her death occurred originally before anyone else's.' He thought before something else struck him.

"Why is time moving as it should now?" He asked.

"It's because you are with me. As long as you're around someone from Hinamizawa then time will progress normally." Rika scoffed a little after she spoke. "Not that it's done that for me in a long time."

"What about Yusuke and Kuwabara?" Kurama wondered his concern for his friends growing.

"As long as they stay in the festival area where there are people then they should be fine otherwise they may have already spirited to the next day." Rika said as they came back to the festival area.

"Wonderful." Kurama said under his breath walking through the dwindling crowd.

Kuwabara searched around him as he walked along the outskirts of the festival. While the area was still fairly well lit from torches and paper lanterns without spiritual awareness he felt blind. He kept attempting to search out of habit only berating himself when he realized that he wasn't able too.

"Stupid powers. Always sleeping when I need them the most and stupid Urameshi for wandering off." Kuwabara muttered under his breath. After Kurama had run off with the shrine maiden Kuwabara and Yusuke had decided to stay more or less within the crowds. Most of the participants in the festival had gone down to the river but there was still a steady enough group of people coming and going that the two were separated.

"Are you looking for someone? Did you get lost, get lost?" Kuwabara felt the hair on the back of his neck prickle at the small voice. Quickly he turned to be faced with one of the girls that they had seen in the town. She had on the same white hat and matching dress as before with her orange hair cropped short at an angle.

"Umm…who, me? No, no I'm…I'm good." He stuttered out putting his hands up to keep them from trembling as his normally deep voice went up a few octaves.

"You're the guy that was with that chick that Kei-chan was trying to talk to." The other girl said. Kuwabara turned his eyes to her falling on her blue hair first before resting on the gun that was holstered to her torso. He swallowed hard.

"Well it was nice seeing you girls again but I've really got to be going so…see ya'." Kuwabara tried turning to make his getaway only to have a hand firmly clamped on his shoulder.

"Hey not so fast, so fast." The girl in white said.

"Yeah buddy. Chill out, take a breather. You look like you're about to pass out." The blue haired girl said. Kuwabara trembled under her touch which she quickly removed.

'We were sent here to help these people. They need my help but right now they might help me find Kesaki.' Kuwabara thought regretfully with a sigh. He turned back around to face them.

"Sorry ladies it's just, have you seen that girl we were with? I can't find her anywhere or any of my friends for that matter." He said swallowing down his fear trying to act somewhat normal.

"Oh, so you are lost, are lost." The girl in white said taking a step closer to him.

"No I haven't seen her. Have you Rena?" The blue haired girl asked her friend.

"Not since that day in town Mi-chan." Rena replied with a shake of her head. Both girls had concern written clear across their faces and it helped to settle Kuwabara's nerves somewhat but he still forced himself into high alert or as alert he could be without his awareness. "But don't worry, worry."

"That's right. We'll help you find her. We know the area like the back of our hands. "Mi stated.

"What was her name again, again?" Rena asked furrowing her brow somewhat as if she were thinking.

"You really don't remember; with how Kei-chan went on and on about Kesaki-chi." Mi replied. Kuwabara couldn't help but pick up on the hint of jealousy laced behind her good natured reply. He crossed his arms across his front in an effort to prevent him from clenching his fists.

"Oh yeah, I remember now, remember now." Rena said making a small fist and gently knocking herself on the forehead smiling. "By the way I'm Ryuuga Rena and this is Sonozaki Mion."

"I'm Kuwabara." He replied out of habit.

"What's your first name, first name?" Rena asked her smile faltering somewhat as she lowered her gaze slightly.

"Uh well, it doesn't matter I mean everyone just calls me Kuwabara anyways 'cept for my family." He stated keeping his tone somewhat steady.

"Well duh! Of course your family wouldn't call you by your family name." Mion said clearly teasing him. "At any rate let's get going. They're already starting to clean up the booths so we should look for Kesaki while there's still some light around here."

"Yes Mi is right. It gets scary around when it's dark out, dark out." Rena said. The two girls led Kuwabara away from the security of the festival into the woods as they called for his sister.

"Damn it to frigin' hell! Kuwabara where the fuck are you?" Yusuke shouted receiving a few angry glares at him from people walking by but he didn't care. He was used to it. Yusuke stormed around pissed off thinking of all the ways he could punch Kuwabara's lights out when he found him for getting lost on top of Keaka already being lost. "Why the hell do I care so much? Christ, those two are always getting into trouble when shit goes down. Friendship is severely over rated." He ranted on to himself walking away from the festival cutting onto a path the led him into the woods.

He followed it to the best of his ability swearing when he snagged his foot on a tree root and cursed nature for the millionth time. The tree's blocked out the moonlight leaving him almost in pitch black. Out of instinct he kept his finger in a trigger position even though he knew when the time came it would be a wasted effort. 'Least I still got my trusty fists.'

"Nii-nii." The small voice said from somewhere behind him. Yusuke's heart dropped at the heart broken cry as muffled as it may have been. His hair stood on end as he whirled around swallowing hard to be faced with nothing. 'Didn't Kuwabara say someone had said that in the school house?' Yusuke wondered to himself.

He willed his feet to move forward as his legs remained dead weights attached to his body. He didn't want to know what had made that sound. He felt defenseless, useless but since when had the odds ever been with him? Yusuke took a deep breath as he came around a large tree squinting in the dark to find a small figure curled up around the base of it.

"Hey, kid." He said. In an instant the figure stood up pressing itself against the trunk of the tree.

"Don't come any closer to me. I'll scream!" She shouted at him.

"Whoa, whoa chill out girl. I was just wondering if you were alright." Yusuke said even though it was a lie but the last thing he needed was the kid screaming bloody murder and getting arrested in the back water, haunted village.

"I'm fine. Just…go away!" She shouted at him sitting back down on the ground with her knees to her chest. In any normal circumstance Yusuke would have shouted back at her, probably sworn and stormed off but given everything that was going on he thought that maybe it would be best to stay on the resident's good sides. It was times like these that he really wished he could have Kurama's gifted speech but knew at the moment he was on his own.

Yusuke sighed and sat down a bit away from her so that she didn't go on high alert again.

"Sorry that I scared you. That wasn't what I wanted." He said receiving a small sniffle in reply. "What are you crying for?"

"I'm not crying!" The girl said wiping her eyes quickly with the backs of her hands. "I'm not sad, I'm just…disappointed."

"Disappointed?" Yusuke asked his curiosity peeking. The girl nodded her head once. "About what?"

For a while the girl didn't say anything only sniffled a little and occasionally rubbed at her nose to wipe it. Yusuke didn't think she was going to answer him and opened his mouth to say something but quickly closed it.

"My nii-nii; I was so sure he'd come back tonight." She began. "But he's not here and he isn't coming back. I'll never see him ever again. Nii-nii!" She wailed covering her face with the backs of her hands as a new onslaught of tears was unleashed.

"Hey now, don't cry." Yusuke said unsure of how to get her to calm down. "Well where is he? I mean do you want to call him or something?"

"I can't. I don't know where Nii-nii went. He ran away because of me." She choked out. "I relied on him too much. I didn't let him have any time for himself so he left."

"Well that's a dick move. Who the hell was this guy anyway? You're boyfriend?" Yusuke asked cynically.

"No stupid he's my brother! Satoshi wasn't a dick either! "She shouted at him her sorrow turning to anger as she lashed out at him.

"I can't speak from experience because I don't have any siblings but I know two guys that have little sisters and they would do anything to keep them safe. They would never just up and leave them behind. What you're brother did was just plain wrong and really pisses me off!" Yusuke said through clenched teeth.

The girl blinked a few times before crossing her arms across her front and frowned at him slightly.

"What's your name kid?" She asked her tone stronger than it had been a moment before catching Yusuke off guard.

"Um, it's Urameshi." He said wondering if he should have given her a fake name but knew now it was too late.

"Alright Urameshi; I'm Hojou Satoko." She stated pointing her thumb at herself. "It would be cool if you didn't tell anyone that I was here." Satoko made ready to run back towards the festival when Yusuke decided that maybe it would be best to stick with her. While the thought unsettled him he figured that Kurama did it so why shouldn't he? It would be better than wandering aimlessly in the woods.

"Satoko hold on. I'm looking for someone, well now I'm looking for two people. You know this area?" He asked. The girl turned back around to face him and brought a hand up to her face chuckling to herself.

"Do I know the area? These woods are my playground where I test out my traps." She stated.

"Traps?" Yusuke asked standing as well.

"I'm the best trap master in Hinamizawa and Okinawa for that matter." She said clearly proud of herself. "So it would be best if you did stick with me. I don't want you getting hurt."

"You set up traps around here?" Yusuke asked glancing around. Satoko chuckled again leaving Yusuke uneasy as she led the way.

Kurama and Rika ran up a few steps that led to a shrine.

"This is the tool shed." Rika explained as they stopped to catch their breath.

"Tool shed? For the ritual tools?" Kurama asked. Rika nodded her head.

"Yes that is correct. They're only just for show really." She said. "Once the residents realized that there was a need to keep people in the village because of Hinamizawa syndrome they instilled in them the fear of Oyashiro-sama. People were told that if they left then they would be struck down by the curse."

"A clever way to contain the condition." Kurama said.

"Yes however I don't think that it is infectious unless you come to Hinamizawa." Rika replied.

"What exactly is it? Mass paranoia or an actual disease?" Kurama asked intrigued by the underlying mystery surrounding the area even under the circumstances.

"It is a parasite that embeds itself in a person's brain. It cannot be detected or removed. It controls a person's actions causing their paranoia and violence." Rika explained. "That is why Takano came here as well as the rest of 'Tokyo'."

"'Tokyo'; isn't that an organization?" Kurama asked.

"You've heard of them?" Rika asked her eyes widening somewhat.

"Yes. From what I know they are an influential group with ties to the city they share their name with. They have a stake in the drug industry as well as politics and every other major decision involving the country." Kurama explained. Rika closed her eyes taking deep breaths while she clenched her fists.

"I bet they gained their power from the Hinamizawa incident that they caused." Rika said reopening her eyes. "It only makes sense. After Takano proved that Hinamizawa syndrome was real they received all their grants and money which gave them the power to gain a foothold in your time."

"It does make sense; they lied to the public about the incident and gained everyone's trust in order to gain power." Kurama said. Even without any of his demonic awareness he could still feel the anguish roll off of Rika in waves. "I am truly sorry for everything."

"It's not your fault." She said with a brunt shake of her head. A rustling of bushes caught their attention putting both on high alert as they took defensive stances.

"Rika?" The voice said as Satoko neared with Yusuke following close behind.

"Satoko what are you doing here?" Rika asked her gaze falling on Urameshi. The tone in her voice had visibly changed. While the maturity remained you could only hear it if you knew to listen for it. She sounded in all respects like the small girl she resembled.

"I found this guy wandering around the woods. I didn't want him to ruin one of my traps by tripping it so I helped him along." Satoko replied smirking broadly.

"That was kind of you, ni-pah." Rika said.

"Hey Kurama." Yusuke said with a nod of his head.

"Yusuke, it is good to see you unharmed. I see you've made a friend." Kurama said.

"Yeah but you didn't find any of the Kuwabara's have you?" Yusuke asked.

"What do you mean 'Kuwabara's'? Don't tell me…" Kurama said already fully understanding where the conversation was headed.

"You know it man. The dumbass took off on me and is now, like his sister, lost." Yusuke replied.

"So you guys know each other?" Satoko asked standing next to Rika staring at them both curiously one brow raised.

"Yeah we know each other." Yusuke said shortly.

"We're looking for our friends. They seem to have wandered off." Kurama said.

"Hey you guys!" Kuwabara's voice rang out to them as he ran over with Mion and Rena in tow. "Man am I glad to find you." He was slightly out of breath but seemed no less worse for wear.

"Thanks for taking off on me dip shit! Your sisters wandering around the woods and you freakin' get lost! What good are you?" Yusuke shouted at him.

"What good am I? First off I'm not the one that got lost, you were and secondly you're the leader so she was your responsibility as much as mine." Kuwabara quipped back. "So where is she?"

"Damned if I know!" Yusuke yelled.

"Pfft, useless." Kuwabara said turning his nose up slightly at the shorter teen. Yusuke growled at him grabbing him by his shirt collar bringing back his fist to make his day dreams come true of beating Kuwabara into the ground.

"Girls, girls! You're both pretty but shouldn't we be looking for your friend?" Mion said grabbing Yusuke's fist.

"Yes we have a friend missing too." Rena said causing both boys to stop and stare at her dumbly. "Keichii-kun wandered off, wandered off."

"Well speak of the devil…" Mion said as a figure emerged from around the tool shed. His red vest appeared darker with the only light being from the moon as he walked closer to them.

"You son of a bitch!" Yusuke shouted as both he and Kuwabara raced towards him grabbing him by the front of his best to slam him against the side of the shed. The girls let out gasps of surprise while Kurama ran to his friends.

"Where is she Maebara? Where's my sister?" Kuwabara shouted angrily.

"Better start talking man before my fists do." Yusuke threatened.

"Put him down." Kurama commanded his voice chilling in his throat coming off more as a dare for them to continue. Both teens glanced back at their team mate before dropping a very bewildered Keichii. He thudded to the ground before standing back up quickly matching their icy stares.

"What the hell is you guy's issue with me?" Keichii asked clearly pissed off at the way they were treating him.

"Where's Keaka?" Kuwabara asked forcefully.

"Kesaki?" Keichii asked visibly swallowing. "I haven't seen her."

"He's lying." Kurama said his voice coming off as flat. Causing Yusuke to hit his fist against the shed as a warning.

"Well I mean I saw her but that was it I didn't say anything to her or go near her." He replied.

"Kei-chan; why are you lying?" Mion asked her voice low in her throat.

"Yeah Keichii. There's no need to lie to them, to them." Rena replied while Satoko simply hid behind Rika.

"What now you guys are on their side? I should have known with how weird you were all acting towards me lately! You're all jealous just because I showed interest in another girl that wasn't a part of the club. You all are a bunch of witches who want to keep me all to yourselves." Keichii shouted clearly becoming stressed out by the situation. "Well you won't keep my under your spell anymore! From now on Maebara Keichii is a free man!" His voice became hoarse as it cracked under the strain of his erratic shouting.

Both Mion and Rena looked at each other grimly while Rika only shook her head.

"You guys are the worst though. Keeping me from her all the time when all I wanted was to be friends with her! Well you know what? Now none of you will be friends with her…she will never make friends again!" Keichii shouted at them. It was Kurama this time that grabbed Keichii by the front of his vest banging him hard into the wooded side of the shed causing his head to snap back slightly as he rested his chin down on his front.

"What do you mean?" Kurama demanded his voice rumbling out of his throat in a growl. Keichii's shoulders began to convulse slightly before any sound came out but before long the low chuckle emerged from deep in his chest turning into a full blown maniacal laugh.

"She cried and cried! She said that she was sorry for going off on her own that she was just trying to help me but I knew that she was only playing games with me just like everyone else, just like all of you!" Keichii managed to get out before he was completely lost to the sound he was making. His voice seemed to become choked off in his throat as if he were having difficulty breathing.

"Satoko, Mion, Rena; go and find Irie-san. Tell him that Keichii is infected." Rika said her voice taking on its more mature tone. The three girls stood frozen in place with eyes wide not quite sure what exactly they were witnessing. "Go!" Rika commanded causing the three to scatter off back towards the festival.

"Where is she? Where is she?" Kuwabara screamed in Keichii's face as the boy began to bring his hands up to his throat.

"No! Don't let him he's going to claw it out!" Rika shouted. In an instant the three had him on the ground with his arms pinned behind his back as he lay on the ground on his stomach. Keichii struggled and shouted out his gasped breaths about Oyashiro-sama and its curse. Rika walked over to him slowly kneeling in front of him carefully. She placed one of her hands to his head and patted his hair down somewhat. "Pain, pain go away." She said in a sing-song voice.

"Rika…" Keichii gasped out.

"It's alright Keichii-kun. This is all just a bad dream that will go away in the morning and everything will be okay again but first you have to tell me where Kesaki is." Rika said sweetly to soothe him. It seemed to work as he stopped struggling but still gasped as if he were choking.

"Ke…Kes…" He managed to gasp out as he lowered his head to the ground and his eyes glanced underneath the shed.

"Keichii-kun I'm so sorry that this happened to you again." Rika said sadly patting his head a few more times before reaching into a fold of her ceremonial outfit. "Don't worry, one day we'll fix things. We'll set everything right and then we can all grow up and be happy." She pulled out a syringe causing everyone's eyes to go wide.

"What are you doing?" Kurama asked already letting go of the boy.

"Hey you aren't going to…to kill him are you?" Kuwabara asked as Yusuke held him fast still.

"Either way he's going to die and personally I don't want to see my friend claw his throat out!" Rika snapped at them causing them all to be silent. Rika stabbed the needle into his neck emptying the syringe directly into his jugular. For a moment he remained silent until he let out a strangled cry as his body tensed before going limp his eyes still staring underneath the tool shed.

Both Kuwabara and Yusuke quickly let him go staring down at the body with wide eyes. Rika sat still next to her friend patting his head as tears fell down her face.

"Your friend is underneath the tool shed. I'm sorry." She said hiding her eyes behind her long bangs as she lowered her head somewhat.

Kurama had already walked around the back of it when he couldn't see anything from where they presently were. Kuwabara ran around as well as Yusuke both teens shouting for her. It didn't take long for Kurama to find the large splatter of blood on the ground as well as on the tool shed. A few bloody handprints sat on the wood nearly black in the moonlight.

"No…she can't, she can't be…" Kuwabara fell to his knee's letting his head fall down as he covered his face with his hands.

"Keaka!" Yusuke shouted again knowing from the amount of blood it was probably in vain.

"There!" Kurama shouted and ran over to a part of the shed where the wood had rotted away creating a small space between the ground and the building. Kurama peered in closing his eyes tightly as he reached in with both hands grabbing onto his friends limp ones pulling her out.

Yusuke fell heavily to the ground as he felt his heart pound in his ears.

"This is a dream…a nightmare. This isn't real. It can't be real." He whispered out at the surreal scene before him. To say that she had simply been killed was a gross understatement. She had been mutilated.

Her face was crushed in so badly that it was impossible to tell what went where. The top of her skull was bashed in was well with a few pieces of bone clearly missing. Bones protruded out of her skin and at odd angles.

"She was beaten to death." Kurama said his eyes were glassy as if he were distancing himself from the situation. Yusuke looked up at him in question. Kurama simply pointed a few feet away where a bat lay with a considerable amount of blood splattered on it.

"I never meant for any of this to happen. I should have known better when Hanyuu came up with the idiotic idea of bringing in outsiders." Rika said as she rounded the tool shed. She stopped in front of Kuwabara as she took in the scene. "The rest of you should leave while you still have the chance. Hanyuu can take you back to your own time of that I'm certain." Rika made a move to leave when she felt a light tug on her clothing. Kuwabara looked up at her with pain etched in his eyes, a look that Rika knew all too well and had seen far too much of.

"My sister, Kesaki..what about her? What's going to happen to her?" He asked hoarsely. Rika turned her head to the side as she pulled away from him.

"She is a part of Hinamizawa now." Rika said her voice low.

"What the hell is that supposed to mean?" Yusuke shouted angrily receiving only silence. "You can tell your little Hanyuu demon friend or whatever the hell she is that we're not going anywhere! We're not leaving here without Keaka!" Rika glanced back at him for a moment and shook her head before walking off leaving the three sitting beside their fallen team mate.


	4. Chapter 4

It didn't take long for the police to appear on the scene since they hadn't been too far away. Kuwabara sat beside his sister with his head bowed down and his shoulders convulsing every few seconds or so. A few sobs would rip jaggedly from his throat but other than that he remained silent. Before the cops had arrived and Rika had walked off Yusuke was left staring blankly ahead into the darkness of the forest around him.

Distantly the dying sounds of the festival could still be heard, a shout here or a particularly loud laugh, but in the area around the tool shed there was only silence and death. His eyes flicked down to Kurama, he always seemed to know what to do, but he appeared just as lost as he felt. It was something that as a team they had yet to deal with, Genkai had died during the dark tournament sure but she had come back. They always came back no matter how grim the situation, in the end they were always together tired but at the same time laughing about the crap they had just had to endure.

Yusuke wandered over to the body of Maebara and stared down at him with contempt. He hated him for what he had done but knew inwardly that it wasn't necessarily all directed towards the other boy. He hated himself for letting it happen. It was after all in the end his fault for allowing his team mate to be killed since he was the one they all seemed to follow, why he still wasn't quite sure. They had beat team Toguro in the dark tournament and since things had more or less been calm. They had walked into Hinamizawa with that chip of victory on their shoulders only now to see the folly of their ways and where in the hell was Hiei?

It was then that Yusuke heard a group of people approaching. They were pushed back by several officers while flashlights were shined around and spotlights were set up bringing to light the gruesome scene. The three of them were asked questions as to what happened and as usual it was Kurama who answered the police. Even for him it seemed too surreal to actually be happening.

On the other hand his genius mind began processing everything around him making sure not to skim over a single detail. It made him question again Rika's theory that she was moving from one world to another but only this time it made him wonder if maybe she were right. Mentally he shook his head; it wouldn't make sense. Once again he reminded himself, if that were the case this would be considered a 'dead' world.

"I'm detective Ooishi. My officers informed me that you knew the girl. I am very sorry for your loss." The rounded man said as he sauntered over bringing Kurama out of his thoughts. The three remained silent. "So you kids were here for the festival?"

"That is correct." Kurama replied his voice soft.

"And you're from Tokyo, right?" Ooishi asked. Kurama merely nodded his head once. "Your friend her name is Kuwabara Kesaki?"

"Keaka, her name is Keaka. She doesn't like Kesaki." Kuwabara said suddenly as he clenched his fists tightly. "She never did, ever since we were little."

"You've known her a long time then?" Ooishi asked.

"All of her life. She's my…my…little sister." Kuwabara managed to choke out as hard as it was with the words sticking in his vocal cords.

"I am sorry for you and your family Kuwabara-san." Ooishi said. "I'm going to need to take you three down to the station, ask some questions if you feel up to it of course."

"Detective Ooishi, if it's all the same to you we would prefer to wait for morning?" Kurama asked.

"Of course uh…Minamino-san right?" Ooishi asked receiving another nod from Kurama. He turned his gaze to Yusuke. "And Urameshi-san. I understand. That's fine. Are you boys staying in the village or Okinomiya?"

"Okinomiya?" Yusuke asked narrowing his eyes somewhat.

"Yeah you had to have passed through if you came up this way to Hinamizawa." Ooishi said.

"You'll have to excuse my friend. None of us are exactly in our right frame of mind." Kurama interjected quickly swiping the look of contemplation that crossed the detectives face clean.

"Right, of course. Well at any rate do you guys need a ride down into town? It's quite the haul especially at this time of night." He said straightening out his expression.

"Thank you but no." Kurama said. "If there is nothing else…"

"You guys are okay to go for now but just remember to stop by the station in Okinomiya tomorrow. I'll make sure your friend gets where she needs to go and again, sorry." Ooishi said walking away.

"Kuwabara…" Yusuke said tugging at his friend's sleeve.

"I know Urameshi, it's just…do you think they'll let me sit with her for a little while?" Kuwabara asked clearing a sob from his throat.

"Given our current situation Kuwabara I highly doubt this will be the last time any of us see Keaka." Kurama said walking away.

"What do you mean by that?" Yusuke asked following close behind his friend with Kuwabara right beside him as they walked into the darkness of the forest.

"The miko said that she was a part of their village. From what I can gather from her she believes that she goes from one world to another. Each time she ends up in Hinamizawa repeating similar events but a few things always seem to stay the same. When we arrived here both the village and town were deserted. If we say that perhaps Rika does travel from one world to another then that would mean this Hinamizawa and Okinomiya were already destroyed and she should have moved on. That is what causes me to believe that she has never left this place along with the rest of its residents." Kurama talked fast and walked even faster as his brain ran more quickly than his mouth was capable of doing.

"What?" Yusuke asked Kurama's explanation refusing to process in his mind.

"This place is cursed and we have found ourselves in its epicenter." Kurama stated.

"So those really are ghosts?" Yusuke asked shoving his hands deeper into his pockets.

"Ghosts, shadows or perhaps an illusion of people who died here." He said.

"Created by the demon we were sent here after." Yusuke stated.

"It's possible. At this point I am not throwing away anything." Kurama said.

"But my sister's dead. I know a little bit about curses and if it is one then it means she's trapped here now. It means that she's become a part of it." Kuwabara had stopped walking and stood with his head bowed down slightly. He wasn't sobbing anymore and the tears had ceased leaving him with a sore throat and a headache but knew if he could he still would be.

"We'll get her back Kuwabara." Yusuke said.

"And what if we don't Urameshi? What if we can't get her, what if we're all trapped here and this is where we end up; just some ghosts haunting a dead village." Kuwabara shouted. Yusuke took a step back looking down at the ground.

"Now is not the time Kuwabara. Once we get back to the inn we can discuss it. Unfortunately it will take us some time before we can come up with a solution." Kurama said shooting a glare back at the two of them which resulted in silence.

The rest of the walk was a quiet one. Whether it took them a while to reach the hotel or not neither could tell. Their watches still weren't working and the stars seemed transfixed in their place unmoving. The three team mates walked into the inn exhausted from what had transpired. As they entered their room the beds came into all of the view.

"I'd give anything just to be able to lay down and sleep." Yusuke stated falling down fast first onto the mattress. Kurama sat down on the bed opposite to him while Kuwabara sat in a chair that was located in a corner of the room.

"As much as we would all like to rest I don't believe it would be wise." He said.

"Yeah, no shit. Who knows how much time would pass if we did." Yusuke replied. Kurama nodded in agreement.

"Once we learn more about how time passes then we can sleep in shifts." Kurama said after a few minutes had passed but received no answer from Yusuke. He watched the teen for a few moments watching as he breathed slowly and sighed realizing that he had already fallen asleep. "Or not."

Kurama stood up walking over to his friend rolling him over onto his back. The last thing they needed was Yusuke suffocating himself in the blankets. It never did cease to amaze the fox how bad luck seemed to follow the boy. His eyes flicked to Kuwabara who had his head lolled back slightly breathing steadily. He wasn't asleep yet but he soon would be.

'Perhaps it is for the best that they rest. Who knows what we may come across here.' Kurama said. He walked over to the window pushing the curtain aside slightly to peer outside. The sun shone brightly as if it were late morning when he was certain they had only been in the room for a few minutes. Without any further hesitation he walked over to the night table that sat between the two beds against the wall. He searched through the drawer finding no pen or paper. He sighed deeply before walking out of the room making sure it was locked securely.

If he had been able to tap into his demonic energy he would have erected a plant barrier in front of the door ensuring the two wouldn't be able to leave until he came back but relented to simply leaving a message at the front desk.

"It is of the utmost importance that they do not leave the inn until I return. Can you please relay this message to them?" Kurama said to the girl at the desk. She wrote it down and nodded offering a pleasant smile. "Thank you."

Kurama walked out of the inn onto the sidewalk making his way past others as they hurried by. In any other case he wouldn't have paid any of the inhabitants much mind but given the situation he eyed each cautiously. He examined them but aside from obviously being stuck in the past they didn't appear any different from any other person. His mind ran over again what he knew about Hinamizawa and Okinomiya.

He knew that he had heard about Okinomiya as being associated with the village that lay an hour or so away but had never known its name. Most of Hinmizawa's residents had commuted daily for either work or school but it did have its own residents. He knew from what he had been told that Hinamizawa had been wiped out by a natural disaster. While most of it he had learned from just what children had whispered on playgrounds when he was smaller he knew that the overall legend of the village was true.

Given what Rika had told him however he had to take into consideration the involvement of Takano Miyoko. If she were in fact responsible for what had happened in the village then why was she still there? Had something happened to her as well that made her a part of Hinamizawa as well? Was she even initially responsible for what had happened?

Kurama knew that demons enjoyed playing games. He stopped dead in his tracks as an icy fear gripped him. It cascaded down his spine causing him to shudder despite the onslaught of humidity in the air. His heartbeat sped up tenfold at the prospect of what he had thought.

'If a demon was the one responsible for what had initially happened here to cause the deaths of its residents and abandonment of the town then who is to say that it hasn't kept their souls here for its own amusement.' Kurama thought. It wouldn't be unheard of. There was nothing that most demons found more amusing then messing around with the human world and its inhabitants but how could it have gone on so long undetected?

If a demon had been responsible for murdering all of the village's residents then keeping their souls trapped it would mean that what they faced was extremely powerful and intelligent; a very bad combination. Kurama tuned his senses back in seeing that he had walked himself to a bus stop. He looked at the sign that read 'Hinamizawa'. Underneath it someone had scribbled the word 'onifaguchi'.

'They couldn't be more right.' He thought to himself. If he could get away from people then he was almost certain the walk up to the village wouldn't be a full hour and even if it was he had to get to the village for that was where his answers were hidden.

Yusuke woke up groaning and rubbing at his forehead yawning loudly. He sat up rubbing at his face bewildered for a moment trying to recall where he was before remembering the events of the night before. If that's all it had been, the night before. He was upset that he had fallen asleep not knowing how much time had passed since.

He did a quick scan of the room seeing only Kuwabara.

"Where the hell's Kurama?" He asked aloud to himself. He stood up walking over to the door that led into the small bathroom to find it empty. "Son of a bitch!" Yusuke cursed opening the door only to slam it shut behind him. "After all of his big fancy talk that we should stay together the fox boy goes and takes off."

Yusuke stalked past the desk. It was vacant otherwise he would have asked if Kurama had said where he was going even though it didn't take too many brain cells to figure out where they all should have been. The air outside the inn was hot and sticky leaving Yusuke at least grateful he had worn a short sleeve shirt as opposed to his heavy school uniform jacket.

He passed other people on the street seeing them but not paying any attention to them still feeling his stomach knot uncomfortably at the fact that they were walking amongst the dead. If what Kurama had said were true anyways. He wanted to believe that it was just an illusion but knew from his time being a ghost that it was possible for a spirit to become transfixed to one place. He had helped enough of them move on to know that when they were determined enough that that was that. Without a sock in the jaw there was no moving them especially when they didn't know that they had actually died.

He hoped that it wasn't the case with Hinamizawa but realized, with some nausea, that it probably was what was going on. It was an awful scenario. At least he had been able to figure out he had died when he was unceremoniously run down and then thrown into the back of the meat wagon but what about a person who had gone to bed and never woken up or at least not physically. The idea hit him like lightening jolting him down to his very core.

"Please just let all of this be an illusion." He said aloud not wanting to have to deal with what may happen to the residents once they took care of the demon because he was going to get his hands on the that demon and he would make sure to get in a lot of good punches before it was all said and done.

He came to a bus stop reading the sign that indicated that it went to Hinamizawa. Despite his best efforts he couldn't suppress the shudder that followed reading the word 'onifaguchi' underneath it. If what Kurama has said was right then if he could get away from people, and he was fairly certain not many people would willingly walk up the village road, then he should be able to get to the village in a short time. He knew ultimately that that was where he had to go whether he wanted to or not.

Periodically Kurama had checked the position of the sun as he had walked up the mountain road and saw that after a while it had stopped moving. His watch remained immobile whether he was around anyone from the area or not. As he walked over the large bridge that led directly into the village he attempted to push down his earlier thoughts of what was going on in the area in order to think clearly.

There were a few houses here and there but everything was spread out over the large area of the village. He stopped only momentarily at the base of the steps that led to Furude shrine sighing as he did so before walking on.

"Hey, wait up!" A girl called out that forced him to stop cold. Everything in his body seemed to freeze at the voice and the sudden rush of footsteps that followed.

"Well you're the one being so slow." Another said in response. Slowly Kurama turned around blinking a few times in order to make certain he was in fact seeing everything clearly.

"Keaka!" He shouted out forcing her to put her brakes on as she ran nearly crashing to the ground. She turned around and smiled at him pleasantly. He walked over to her cautiously examining her as much as he could. Her hair was pulled back tightly on her head into two pigtails that hung down on either side of her head leaving her bangs resting loosely against her forehead. Her top was a simple white short sleeved button up with a navy blue ribbon tie around the collar. Her skirt was the same navy blue color and came to rest halfway down her thighs. White knee high socks and brown school shoes finished her ensemble.

She appeared to be in good health which only caused Kurama's fear to thicken. She smiled at him as if they were friends in passing or rather acquaintances.

"Good morning." She said politely bowing somewhat in respect.

"Good morning Keaka. Where are you headed?" Kurama asked cautiously.

"To school of course, Keichii-kun and I are late so we have to be heading off now." She said simply brushing him off.

"Keaka, wait; you don't go to school here in Hinamizawa. You attend school in Tokyo." He said feeling confident if he could ease her away from Maebara then he could help her. His eyes turned to the boy who watched the scene innocently enough. None of the former malice he had directed towards him for being with the girl was projected as he stood by patiently waiting for her.

"Oh, well I've transferred here to Hinamizawa." She said smiling happily.

"Transferred?" Kurama asked feeling his voice dry out in his throat.

"Mhmm." Keaka said with a nod. "I'm staying with Ryuuga Rena and her father. They were nice enough to let me stay with them."

"Keaka what about your family; your sister Shizeru and your brother Kazuma? I highly doubt they would simply let you move all the way up here to Hinamizawa." He stated.

"They understand." She said simply. Inwardly Kurama screamed to her to come with him but knew it fell upon a deaf mind.

"I don't think that they will. You know how protective they are of you. Not only that but…" He continued only to be cut off abruptly.

"I said they understand!" Keaka screamed loudly closing her eyes tightly. The sudden outburst caught him off guard as he stopped speaking. She appeared angry, extremely angry. Kurama took a step back as she reopened her eyes. For a moment they held nothing behind them. There was no emotion, no light and no life; they were dead eyes. In an instant they came back into focus and she smiled sweetly at him again. "Well we have to going now. I'll see you around Minamino-san." She said formally.

She walked off with Maebara. Distantly he heard the boy ask her how she was feeling but soon they were gone from view. Kurama tried to swallow down his fear and doubts but knew it was pointless. The only time his friend had ever called him so formally was when she was angry at him. He didn't know what exactly to make of the situation but knew that Kuwabara Keaka was lost to them.


End file.
